Win #600 was hard-fought for the Bobcats, as the Jaguars took them to the brink in a fun home-opening contest.
Ohio (1-1) picked up its first win of the season— and the 600th in program history— on Saturday night, ultimately putting away a testy South Alabama (0-2) squad late in the fourth quarter.
On the backs of some improved second-half offense and a bend-don’t-break defense impacted by significant injuries, the ‘Cats got the job done even though it wasn’t pretty at times.
The contest began with the major news that South Alabama QB Gio Lopez was unable to go due to a turf toe injury suffered against North Texas last week. Lopez set a program record last weak with 494 combined yards passing and rushing.
Bishop Davenport started in relief of Lopez, his first career start for the Jags.
The game started with a feeling out period, where neither side could gain significant advantage, trading punts before the ‘Cats made the scoreboard on the game’s fourth possession.
Ohio’s RB Ricky Hunt got the drive started on a career-long 59-yard run that featured a nice cut outside to daylight off of effective blocking. In its own territory, the Jags defense stiffened, keyed by a third-down sack from Jordan Norman to force a Gianni Spetic 45-yard field goal, putting the Bobcats up 3-0.
As the game moved from the late first to the second, South Alabama was able to move the ball some on passes in the flats and some crossing routes but were ultimately turned away against the ‘Cats defense. In Ohio territory, the Jags’ Davenport hit a WR screen that looked like it had a chance for solid yardage, but Bobcat DB Tank Pearson shed his blocker and made a nice tackle in space to prevent any major damage. CB Roman Parodie squelched the drive on ensuing play when he broke up a Davenport throw.
Things changed at the beginning of the second as Ohio got the first break of the game, a muffed punt by the Jags returner which was recovered deep in South Alabama territory by long snapper Colby Garfield.
Exorcizing some red zone demons from last week, the ‘Cats cashed on a three-play, 20-yard drive capped on a three-yard TD run by Anthony Tyus III, who eluded three defenders to extend the lead to 10-0.
With the first half winding down, the Jags offense started to gain some traction on the strength of some big plays and 45 yards in Ohio personal fouls.
South Alabama kicked off their run with an explosive play when WR Jamal Pritchett made a foot drag on a 26-yard snag down the sideline which was extended 15 yards by a roughing the passer call. Deep in Ohio territory, the ‘Cats regrouped to force a 28-yard field goal by Laith Marjan to narrow the lead to 10-3.
Good fortune continued to smile on the Jags down the stretch of the first half, when a Stellen Bowman interception at midfield was negated by a Bobcats’ roughing the passer penalty which returned possession to South Alabama plus an additional 15 yards.
Capitalizing on the second chance, South Alabama marched the rest of the field on the ground in what became the Fluff Bothwell show as the Jags runner and blockers dominated the action, culminating with a seven-yard Bothwell TD scamper. Bothwell was the workhorse on the drive, tallying 60 yards on the ground
Undaunted, Ohio’s offense put together its best drive of the half. The seven-play, 75-yard drive through the air hit paydirt on the 33-yard strike from QB Parker Navarro to WR Chase Hendricks. With inside positioning by the Bobcat pass catcher, Navarro uncorked a floater to the goal line where only his receiver could catch it for the score.
Ohio began the third with another effective series, a 11-play, 76-yard drive that took 8:39 off the clock. Even though Ohio had to overcome a few self-inflicted wounds in a penalty and an RB/QB miscommunication, the drive represents what this offense is capable of when mixing the run and short and intermediate passes to keep the defense off balance. By the time Navarro hit his ten-yard quarterback keeper up the middle to extend the lead to 24-10, the Jags looked discombobulated as no one was a real threat to tackle Navarro.
South Alabama showed the never-die attitude they had exhibited throughout the contest with a 13-play, 75-yard drive of their own, spanning over six minutes. Davenport, in relief duty, was very sharp on the drive, hitting 7-of-7 passes for 73 yards by taking what the Bobcats gave him. WR Pritchett got the final nine yards on another crossing route over the middle to claw back within a single score, 24-17.
The Jags would seize the momentum heading into the fourth as defensive end Carlos Johnson Jr. stripped the ball from Parker Navarro on a strip sack, giving USA the ball in Ohio territory. But as Ohio’s defense had done all night, they found a way to hold, limiting the Jags to a Marjan 38-yard field goal.
Clinging to a 24-20 lead and set to punt, Ohio committed another personal foul, ultimately giving the Jags the ball in great field position near midfield after punting near their endzone. The call this time was interesting but suffice it to say South Alabama’s Jeremiah Webb Jr. hit the deck harder than former Cleveland Cavalier Anderson Varejao trying to draw the charge from near phantom contact. Webb Jr. was back in the next series, showing no apparent long-term effects from the personal foul as noted by the announcers.
The Bobcats responded with another long drive, this time an eight-minute 14-play odyssey for 78 yards, extending the lead to seven on a 26-yard Spetic field goal. The key play was a gutsy call near midfield to go for it on fourth-and-one and leading by less than a score. With the Jags expecting the run, Navarro pulled the ball and hit Mason Williams on a short pass after which the tight end rambled for 15 yards.
Deep in their own territory with around three minutes left, the Jags made a last-gasp to tie the game but solid Ohio defense and 15 yards of offensive penalties forced a punt. Despite three time outs, South Alabama did not get the ball back as Ohio ran out the clock with a few first downs.
NOTES
- Winning is the most important thing and the Bobcats did that. The positive takeaway besides the win was that despite the execution errors on offense and the penalties which included four personal fouls, the ‘Cats played well in stretches and can be better. Winning with a chance to improve is not a bad place to be.
- For the second week in a row, Ohio’s defense played some admirable football. With multiple injuries on the back end including three linebackers and key defensive backs, Ohio found a way to limit South Alabama to 20 points, allowing 335 total yards. Young guys like freshman Stellan Bowman have answered the call on the starting defense when entering the season they figured to be special teamers.
- The ‘Cats were productive on the ground at times again this week, with over 200 combined yards between Anthony Tyus III (74), Ricky Hunt (73), and Parker Navarro (62).
- With WR Owen Coleman having a breakout contest in week one, the Bobcats featured some other wideout weapons this week with Chase Hendricks and Rodney Harris II combining for eight receptions for 108 yards and a score.
- South Alabama has a lot to look forward to this season. Second string QB Bishop Davenport settled in nicely and will give the Jags a valuable second option, even long term. Davenport was composed and showed some good arm strength.
- Jags WR Jamaal Pritchett continues as one of the Sun Belt’s most productive receivers early in 2024 with 18 catches for 264 yards and two scores in two games this year.